


The man from apartment 4B

by Zora



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Modern Era
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-03
Updated: 2017-09-08
Packaged: 2018-09-14 12:54:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 12,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9182656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zora/pseuds/Zora
Summary: Sansa makes a nice living as a succesful beauty and lifestyle blogger. After getting used to living on her own in her new apartment building, she has gotten to know most of it's residents quite well. Most of them, except for the man living right next door.Sept '17 update - omg you guys. 325 kudos for what was meant to be a one shot. Thanks so, so very much.Feb '17 update - Hi all! A little personal note to let you know I still adore this fic, and I WILL finish it. Life has been a little hectic lately! My beau and I are trying to start a family. After almost 4 years of trying, we're now starting IVF and it's very exciting. We both look forward to it and dread it a bit at the same time. Also... I AM GETTING MARRIED!!! My own Sandor proposed on Valentinesday and I could not be happier. It was a big surprise and I cried happy tears ^^Thank you all for your love for this fic! <3





	1. 1.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Cecilia1204](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cecilia1204/gifts).



 

 

She’d often thought about what to do in case of a fire. An actual, home swallowing, all devouring kind of fire. Sansa knew the chances of anything like that happening to her were next to none, but at times her mind would just go there, and all she could think of was she’d make sure to get her cats, Darcy and Liz, to safety first.

Luckily her apartment building was made according to the latest safety regulations, and even if she didn’t exactly live in the best part of town, something about having smoke detectors installed in every room, made Sansa feel pretty safe.

When Sansa had just moved into the apartment building, almost two years ago, it took her a long time to feel at home in her new environment. Everything was so different here, and on most days, especially the quiet ones, Sansa missed her family terribly.

But she was set on getting comfortable and happy, and after she’d unpacked most of her things, set up her camera, computer, lights and backdrop, she decided that baking lemon cakes was exactly what she needed to do. Eating lemon cakes always made her feel right at home, even if she found herself baking them at 4 in the morning. It gave her something to do, besides working from home as a lifestyle and beauty blogger. And the smell, something about that lemony smell, just had a way of making things lighter, happier.

From then on, things continued to get better for Sansa. She discovered that, though she hardly ever saw any of the other residents of the building, with almost everyone being away during working hours, pretty much all of her neighbors were nice and friendly people.

There was Mr. Singh, for instance, on the third floor, a kind Indian shopkeeper who lived with his wife and only daughter. He was a great cook, too, and he insisted on cooking Vindaloo for her after Sansa offered him a lemon pie shortly after she moved in. It started out lovely, but Sansa to this day remembered how the spicy dish nearly burned a hole in her esophagus.  

To her left lived a middle aged married couple, and right across the hall were Renly and his _beautiful_ husband Loras. Renly and Loras had tied the knot the very second the state allowed same sex marriages, and they seemed to be very much in love.

Richard Miller, in the apartment right next to Loras and Renly, was also a nice man. Easy on the eyes, too. Sansa recently learned that he’d been through a divorce not long ago, and he was involved in a nasty custody battle with his ex-wife, the mother of his only child, 13 year old Christine.

Sansa could swear she’d caught Mr. Miller (‘No, _please_ do call me Richard’) staring at her a couple of times, usually when he seemed to think she was unaware of his presence. It gave Sansa the creeps at first, until she met Richard’s daughter, who told her dad: ‘It really is her! The girl from YouTube!’, as it turned out that Christine was subscribed to Sansa’s YouTube channel and she was a little star struck, when she realized Sansa lived near her dad.

With her YouTube channel and her blog reaching more viewers with each passing day, things looked up for Sansa, and she was enjoying life. Who would have thought she’d ever be able to make a decent living doing what she loved doing the most?

The only thing that had her worried, was the nagging feeling she had of having to look over her shoulder constantly, ever since she’d made it very clear to Joffrey that she wasn’t interested in going out with him.

Joffrey Lannister was the eldest son of Cersei Lannister, one of the wealthiest women of the city. He noticed her in one of her videos, a tutorial, and started commenting and sending her personal messages soon after. They were okay enough at first, but soon Joffrey started calling her names and sending her threats when he realized she was not interested in seeing him.

Sansa did her best to let him down easy, always remaining friendly and respectful, but very clear. One day the comments, messages and replies stopped, much to her relief. Until one day Joffrey showed up at her parents’ house, asking her younger sister about Sansa, who wasn’t home at the time. Luckily Robb, her older brother, made it very clear to Joffrey that he was to leave Sansa alone, or else. The police were informed, Sansa moved out of the house and pretty soon, she’d forgotten all about the little prick.

Her feelings of worry and having to look over her shoulder continued to subside, and as the weeks flew by, Sansa got to know all of her neighbors better and better. All of them, except for the man living right next to her, the man from apartment 4B. All she knew was that he was about the same age as Richard, and he had very little contact with the other residents.

She’d wonder why, and curiosity, aside from being a perk, was also her one true fault… So she tried getting in contact with him, but no matter what she tried, all of her attempts failed. He wouldn’t accept packages for her when the delivery guy came and she pretended not to be home, he refused to answer the door even though she tried knocking on it at different times of the day, and he certainly never opened the door for her when she rang his doorbell, offering one of her baked lemon cakes.

Not knowing who lived right next door, not even a name, or a _face,_ felt weird to Sansa. And though she knew she should totally respect the privacy of her neighbor, and not put her nose where it doesn’t belong, curiosity continued to simmer in her for some time. Talking to the other residents didn’t help much either, as apparently only Mr. Singh had ever seen him briefly, and he wasn’t saying much about this man, the stranger living right next door to her. The man from apartment 4B.

 


	2. 2.

Sansa loved working from home, even if she was often working around the clock to make quality content for her viewers and followers. Being her own boss was the best part. Sansa was proud of what she had accomplished on her own and it felt great not having anyone telling her what to do and how and when to do it. She had become good friends with a couple of other active and successful vloggers and they were looking at opportunities to collaborate on videos together in the near future.

With a chaotic, creative brain, Sansa found that blogging and vlogging were a great way to clear her mind, and truth be told, getting nice comments from subscribers and viewers made her feel thankful and humble, but they also gave her a great self esteem boost. Sure, her videos were not on the most intelligent or important topics, but she loved the interaction with everyone online.

Life & Lemons mainly contained videos on cooking, home décor ideas, various diy projects and, her favorite; beauty and lifestyle. It started out as a fun experiment during one of her media classes in high school, but pretty soon Sansa discovered there was something magical about making a video, posting it online and communicating and sharing it with people from all over the world.

What a time to be alive!

“I know it’s probably just an ego thing, Lizzy,” said Sansa to the cat nearest to her. Liz, her two year old Maine Coon girl, seemed unimpressed by the way she continued grooming her long coat.

“And I know there are far more interesting or more important things than five ways to create the perfect messy bun in under a minute,” Sansa added, sighing. “But look, we’re doing so well! Maybe we should get you and Darcy your very own channel, what do you say?” murmured Sansa in amusement.

Sansa scratched the beautiful cat behind her ears before getting up from behind her desk and calling it a day. She’d been editing her latest video for at least four hours straight and her eyes had gotten tired from looking at the bright monitor. It was about time to get something to eat anyways, as her stomach kept roaring.

Her kitchen wasn’t very large, but well supplied for anyone who considered themselves a baking fanatic. She took out a large, glass oven dish, greased it with her favorite cooking oil to prevent the glass from getting sticky and started slicing fresh greens. Covering the bottom of the dish with  shortly precooked potato slices, cream cheese and a little salt and pepper, Sansa prepared one of her favorite, easy to make oven dishes. It would take up to 45 minutes to cook, just long enough for her to pop under the shower and slip into something a bit more comfortable.

***

Though he’d had more than his fair share of fire scares, Sandor Clegane loved working as a professional fire fighter. Even after he passed out from inhaling too much smoke during his rookie days, when for a minute, right before losing consciousness, he was sure he’d burn alive, and that would be that, end of story.

Luckily his colleagues got to him just in time, and they managed to pull him out of the house. Sandor was discharged from the hospital after he convinced the doctors he was feeling fine, coughing after every other sentence. He had to promise to take a couple of sick days before they let him go. Of course he was right back to work the very next morning.

Even after Sandor sustained serious burn injuries on the right side of his face after an old horse stable caught fire during one of the hottest, driest summers of the century, being a fire fighter was so much a part of him, of his identity, that he could never think of doing anthing else. Stacks of crisp dry hay covered the floor of the shabby old stable, and with a short circuit in the old electrical wires, the flames spread incredibly fast, quickly taking down the complete wooden structure of the stables. 

Sandor knew it was a pretty daring and reckless, even stupid thing to do, but he _had_ to get back inside when he heard a high shriek coming from the back of the building. The sound came from a terrified, skinny black little foal, barely a week old. The little foal cried out to its mom and Sandor knew right then and there that would be damned to let the innocent animal die in a fire, if the smoke wouldn’t kill it first.

Guessing by his exterior alone, you’d never think him to be such a _pussy._ Sandor stood nearly six foot and seven inches tall, was broad shouldered and had a pretty rough looking, tanned face, gaunt cheeks, a strong jaw line, high cheekbones, a sharp, slightly hooked nose and long, unruly, raven black hair. His steel, grey eyes a keen contrast to the rest of him. The scarring didn't help much to improve his appearance, but Sandor made peace with it a long time ago. And after a couple of painful and _very_ annoying skin grafts and some rounds of reconstructive surgery the scarring on his face was still clearly visible, but not too bad.

Sandor would of course never admit to it out loud, but he had a very big soft spot for animals. Especially helpless ones, like the little foal that was counting on him. It started just after his 16th birthday. He’d caught Gregor, his older brother, kicking the shit out of a frightened little kitten.

Sandor had always been afraid of his older brother, even though Gregor was only three years his senior. He was taller, bigger, and a lot stronger. But something snapped inside Sandor when he caught his brother, kicking the crap out of a tiny, innocent and scared animal. And for the first time in his life, it wasn’t fear, but an acute, all-consuming rage that occupied his mind, body and system.

With his mother out of the picture and his dad being an absolute worthless drunk piece of shit, Sandor knew not to count on anyone for help. He stormed outside to where his brother was, grabbed the shovel from the little garden shed and hit Gregor over the head with it in one, swift motion. There was a lot of strength behind the blow, and his brother collapsed immediately.

Sandor used the shovel to poke his brother in one of his sides, silently preparing himself for his brothers retribution the minute he got back on his feet, but Gregor lay motionless on the grass, still breathing, blood seeping from a wound on the back of his head.

The tiny little kitten was keeping perfectly still, it’s large eyes wide with fear as he kept them fixated on Sandor. As Sandor approached it, the cat curled itself into the smallest little ball, shivering, and Sandor’s heart sank when he noticed two of its legs were broken, and angled in an impossible position. He squatted down next the little black cat, carefully picking it up and that was the day Sandor decided to leave.

Careful and making sure not to hurt the poor little animal, Sandor went back in to the house, where his father was passed out on the sofa. Taking the little kitten with him, he ran up to Gregor’s room, took all the money Sandor knew he’d made with robbing neighborhood stores and selling drugs, packed a bag with some clothes and his wallet, and Sandor took off, never looking back.

Gregor’s dirty money payed for the poor kitten’s treatment. Making up a story that he’d found the little kitty on the street thinking it had probably been hit by a car,  its legs were set and the cat received pain medication. Gregor’s money also paid for Sandor’s freedom, because that very night he got away from an abusive home and a psycho brother.

Years later his father died, beaten to death by Gregor, who was currently serving time. Sandor stayed with a distant relative for a while, and when he turned 17, he found a job at the local supermarket, rented a small one bedroom apartment, put himself through school and he became a trained fire fighter not much later. The only constant factor in his life was the black cat with the crooked hind legs, whom Sandor dubbed Jack. At almost 15, Jack was still very much alive, and loving life with his friend here in apartment 4B.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the kind comments to the first chapter of this wee fic! :D This is quite a change from what I usually write, but I'm having so much fun. And I am just a tiny teeny smitten with 'my' Sandor here. ^^


	3. 3

The hot shower was nice, and Sansa felt the soreness disappearing from her tense neck muscles. Under the shower was also where she did most of her thinking and reflecting, and putting stuff in perspective.

It had been a while since she last heard from Joffrey, but dealing with the whole situation had taken more out of her than she cared to admit. It all started out innocent enough, with short comments on her videos, where he complimented her on her looks, her red hair or her sense of style.

Sansa tried to respond to as many comments as possible, with almost 250.000 followers on YouTube alone, it was impossible to get back to everyone. When Sansa didn’t answer his questions about going on a date with him, and if she was already seeing someone or not, things got ugly.

Joffrey started calling her names and sent her some pretty nasty threats, saying he’d find out her address and look her up himself. When Arya told her he showed up at their house, fear took a hold of Sansa, and it hadn’t let go of her completely ever since.

Her brothers assured her he’d not be showing his face around anymore and they filed a report with the police, but that didn’t help much. The officer that took the call was kind enough, but he basically said they’d not be able arrest Joffrey or do anything to keep him away from her, until he would become a ‘real’ threat. He’d have to show up with a weapon, get close to Sansa and threaten to kill her, and _then_ they might be able to get a restraining order against the creep. A temporary one.

Shortly after, Sansa moved out of the house. She was done with college and her work was going so well by then, that she decided to put off going to university to see where things would take her. Sansa shot most of her videos at home, and she always made sure to share little personal information on the www. Since her dealings with Joffrey, anything that might somehow give away where she lived now, was an absolute no go.

Living by herself was wonderful and Sansa regularly kept in touch with her family and friends. She couldn’t complain about getting attention from members of the opposite sex, online and offline. Some guys sent her actual marriage proposals. It scared her at first, what with Joffrey Lannister still fresh in her memory, but it was amusing and flattering at the same time. Overall, most guys were kind and respectful to her. But Sansa made a rule for herself, to never go on a blind date, especially with a guy she had met over the internet.

She did get lonely, sometimes. And now, at 23, Sansa more often than not felt like something was missing from her life. Someone to share things with. Someone who would make her feel weak in the knees. Someone to love, fall madly in love with, the kind of love you saw in the movies or read about in books. Sansa refused to settle for anything less, even if it meant she was a hopelessly unrealistic romantic fool.

After she rinsed her hair, Sansa turned off the shower, grabbed a towel she had put on the sink and dried herself off. The bathroom was filled with steam from being under a very hot shower for well over half an hour, and though she felt a bit guilty for not being sparse with using water, Sansa felt recharged, rosy and clean.

Slipping into her panties and a dark blue, laced baby doll, her feet in her fluffy slippers, Sansa took her grey and pink bathrobe from the coat hook and got to working on detangling her long, red tresses. Washing her hair always got it super tangled, no matter how much conditioner or oil she used, but she refused to get her hair chopped off, other than the usual trim to prevent split ends.

It was a lot of work to get all the tangles out, but Sansa didn’t mind. She got so caught up in the job, that Sansa never heard the egg-timer go off in the kitchen.

***

Sandor hadn’t lived in the apartment building for very long, because he moved in about 6 months ago. Being an introvert by nature and having to be on his own from a very young age on, made a bit of a loner out of him.

It served a good purpose, because it meant he was self-sufficient, he’d not have to count on anyone for help, and no one could let him down. Sandor hated to admit it, but had he not worked with at fire station, with his co-workers that taught him the meaning of loyalty, friendship, and trust, he just might have turned into his father. Drinking, bitter and a genuine asshole.

Since he got burned, it had become a bit harder for Sandor to go out in public. He had no problems visiting his friends, being at work, going to the gym or running errands, but social events weren’t really his thing. Strangers, probably intimidated by his size, usually never made any comments when they saw the burns on his face, but he felt self-conscious about them as people often stared at him a little longer, as soon as they had noticed the rather obvious scarring.

It took him some time to find a way to properly deal with the looks and the stares, and usually he’d laugh it off or not pay any attention to the people that felt like staring. Until he ran into the family that lived on the farm where the stables had burned down, the very stable that made him a little less _pretty_.

It wasn’t on his best day. In a _very_ crowded Target, the youngest daughter of the stable owners looked at Sandor, and she almost immediately recognized him, but Sandor himself was not aware of who she was yet.

He remembered feeling frustrated, angry almost, didn’t parents teach their kids that it’s rude to stare anymore?!  Other shop visitors were also eyeing Sandor intently, and he grew very uncomfortable and self-aware.

As he was about to step outside, _forget about these damned groceries, I’ll come back later_ , the little girl ran over to Sandor, flung her tiny arms around his waist and hugged him like there would be no tomorrow.

“MOMMY, MOMMY, THIS IS THE FIRE MISTER MOMMY!”, the little girl had yelled. Sandor had no idea what she was talking about and he didn’t know what to do with himself, until the girl’s mother approached him, saying: “You’re right, Molly! That’s the mister who saved Valiant!”

Still unsure or what to do, Sandor patted the little girl on her back very softly, and he could only imagine what it must look like to other people; this cute little girl hugging a huge, bulky guy, patting her with this hand that was larger than her entire back.

“Mr… Clegane, was it? I am so sorry. We’re the Carter Family. You… you’re the one who rescued the black foal? Valiant? You’re Molly’s hero,” smiled the lady.

_Aha._

They spoke for some time, and bystanders started applauding when they learned Sandor was in fact a fire fighter, and he got injured saving the little girls horse.

Something happened inside Sandor, and he realized that instead of hiding, it would be better to be open and honest about things. It was then that he decided to contact local schools and kids clubs, to speak to them about how to be safe around fires, the work of fire fighters and of course about how to handle burns and such.

The kids loved it, and Sander did too. It helped him to get out again, and he was doing something useful at the same time, teaching children about how to stay safe.

The sound of smoke detectors going off pulled Sandor out of his reminiscing. Immediately his reflexes kicked in, as Sandor scanned the place for a fire extinguisher. Poor Jack had jumped about as high as his crooked, old cat legs could launch him from the scare of the sudden sound.

Running to his front door, the extinguisher firmly tucked under his left arm, Sandor focused his ears to learn that the alarm going off, came from the apartment on his left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, as I feared... three chapters just won't do. I will try and keep this fic short and sweet still, and hopefully 5 chapters will be all :D Thanks for your kind comments. This fandom is the BESTEST EVAR. <3


	4. 4.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is there a fire? Sparks? What's happening?  
> They meet, that's what.

Getting her hair completely tangle free turned out to be quite a chore, and Sansa made a mental note to self: ‘I must find and share better ways to deal with knots’. Cleaning the bathroom after showering and getting ready for the rest of the evening, Sansa looked forward to getting a good night’s sleep.

Sansa had been thinking of ways to expand her professional activities for quite some time, when she decided to enroll in a photography class, earlier that year. Being a vlogger was working out well for her and she made a nice income, but at the same time, Sansa wasn’t sure if it was going to be what she loved doing 5 or 10 years from now, not to mention if she’d still have an audience then.

No, it was time to expand, and see if she could start putting all her social media and content making to good use, maybe try and get some commissions. Being able to add photography to her resume certainly wouldn’t hurt, would it?

Since cleaning always seemed a little easier (and a _lot_ more fun) with music on, Sansa closed her bathrobe, put her hair in a side braid to keep it from knotting again, and played her favorite Red Hot Chili Peppers album. It was still quite early and her neighbors had never complained to her about noise before, so Sansa decided to up the volume.

As she sang along to ‘Scar Tissue’, she mopped the floor, folded her freshly washed towels and rearranged her shampoo bottles, to make everything nice and neat looking. One time her sister, Arya, called Sansa out on her urge to always put stuff back in its original place. Arya, who was pretty messy herself, only made Sansa look worse. “I swear, you have the worst OCD _everrrr_ , Sansa,” Arya used to say, heavily emphasizing the word ‘ever’, to sound extra dramatic.

Remembering Arya making fun of Sansa put a smile on her face. Maybe her sister had a point. But her apartment was small and she had a lot of things, so a minimum of… _organizing_ was necessary. In fact, she’d do a video on the most effective ways to organize closets and drawers next!

Sansa wasn’t very vain at all, but if she was honest, she did have to admit that she owned a ridiculous amount of makeup and skin care products. Some of them were sent to her by makeup companies, hoping she would feature their products in one of her videos. Sansa usually gave away most of the products to friends and family.

She had no problem with sponsored videos, or collaborating with other parties, but most important to her was honesty. Sansa would rather spend half of her income on buying products herself and giving honest reviews on her channel, than to team up with brands, giving positive reviews on their products to make an extra buck.

As she thought about the best way to film a video on organizing ideas, Sansa cleaned the glass door of her shower last and decided that her bathroom really wasn’t to get any cleaner. Opening the door to her bedroom on the left of the shower, Sansa found Darcy, her other cat, in deep sleep on her bed. Darcy, her four year old spotted Bengal, acted as though he wasn’t aware of her presence in the room. After he licked his front paw lazily, Darcy closed his eyes again, going back to sleep.

When she just moved in, Sansa wasn’t planning on sharing her bedroom with the cats. But since the apartment wasn’t very large and they couldn’t go outside because she lived on the fourth floor of an apartment building, she eventually changed her mind and allowed the cats to go wherever they pleased.

Darcy and Liz immediately got along well, much to Sansa’s relief. Darcy was an adult male cat, and he’d already lived with Sansa for a while, when she brought Liz home. Darcy was a pretty relaxed cat however and they quickly became friends. Even now, with Liz outgrowing him in size, he was fine with her around. In fact, they would usually sleep on her bed together, and Sansa wondered where Liz was. Probably still in the living room.

As she walked back to the bathroom where she’d left her phone, Sansa turned off the music, only to find that instead of silence, the music had been replaced with the sound of an alarm going off. And from the sound of it, it was coming from her own home.

Sansa immediately put two and two together. Lingering in the shower for ages like an idiot, musing over how she was ever going to meet her unknown neighbor, ideas for her next video and reminiscing had occupied her so fully, that she never heard the smoke detectors go off. As she was cleaning, the music was on pretty loud…

She ran over to the living room, to find heavy clouds and plumes of thick smoke coming from her oven. Shit. The oven dish. She had forgotten all about it. “Shit, what do I do?!”

The smell of burned food was terrible, but the sight of flames coming from inside the oven were worse. All Sansa could think about, was putting the fire out. And her cats, she thought of them too. Liz and Darcy!

She had to put out that fire and it had to be done _now_ , before the fire could spread any further. Sansa’s mind was racing, and the best idea seemed to open the oven and put out the fire out with water.

 _Water. I need a bucket or something._ As she ran to the kitchen, covering her mouth, Sansa coughed from the smoke she inhaled, a little more with each breath. Sansa swiftly grabbed a bucket from the kitchen cabinet under the sink, filled it up with water she could use to extinguish the fire with, and used her left hand to try and open the oven door, burning her hand on the extremely hot, metal bar.

Sansa was screaming in such pain, that she never heard the sounds of someone banging on her door.

***

With the fire extinguisher still tucked under his arm, Sandor pounded on the door of his neighbor a couple of times. Maybe they weren’t home?

Smoke was developing quickly, and Sandor noticed some plumes escaping from under the front door.

“Hello? Anyone there?”, he yelled. No answer.

Sandor knocked a couple more times, but to no avail. This was taking too long. Taking a step back, he threw in all his strength and weight, forcing the door to open. On the second attempt, the bolts of the door came loose, and he was inside the apartment.

Before him was a breathtakingly beautiful young woman, who had just done something incredibly stupid, judging by the way she was cradling her hand, while trying to use a bucket with water to tame the flames coming from her oven. Shit, Sandor thought to himself. She looked hurt.

He had no time to assess her wounds yet, because the fire was still raging, and it needed to be put out first. Using the fire extinguisher, Sandor quickly reduced the flames to smoke and ashes. Needing a fraction of a second to let the surge of adrenaline calm down, he swallowed and turned to face the girl.

“There, it’s out. You’re safe now.”

Bright blue eyes stared up at him, and for a second, Sandor thought he had seen those eyes before.  The girl squinted briefly after noticing the scarring on his face, but she corrected herself immediately, finding his eyes again and keeping hers locked on his, swallowing.

“Are you hurt?”

Looking at her hand and realizing blisters had already started to form, it took the girl some time to find words, before she managed: “I… A little, I think. I panicked and I tried to open the oven.”

Her hand indeed looked hurt, but from what Sandor could tell, it wasn’t extremely bad. He took a few steps further into the kitchen. Turning on the water, Sandor waited for the temperature of the water to warm up just a little bit before gently guiding the young woman to hold her hand under it. If she was in a lot of pain, she was doing her best not to show it.

Dressed in a grey and pink bath robe with a cat print on it – Sandor had already seen what she was wearing underneath, and he was trying _very_ hard to push the image out of his mind, because _really_ , you just broke into her home and put out a fire and this is _not_ the time, you’re a pro, for fucks sake – she kept her hand under the stream of water.

“Good. Keep it there for a couple of minutes. It should feel better in a little bit. Meanwhile, I’ll see what I can do to shut that damn alarm off.”

The girl turned to look at him again, keeping her hand under the stream of water as he instructed her.

“My cats. Can you please check on them? They’re in my bedroom,” the girl said.

Just as Sandor was about to leave and do as she asked, she added: “And… thank you. Thank you so much. How did you know what to do? And how did you get here so fast?”

Tilting his head to the side a bit, Sandor answered: “You’re welcome. I’m a fire fighter, even though it’s my night off,” he said, slightly grinning at the girl.

“And I got here so fast, because I live right next door.”

On that note he turned around, leaving a dumbfounded Sansa in his wake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I am at home, on sick leave. The flu found me. I wanted to write a couple of days ago, but I couldn't get it done. I hope you like this chapter! <3


	5. 5.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where's this bloody heat coming from?!

With the pain radiating from her burned palm and fingers and the worry about her cats, it took some time for things to click in Sansa’s mind. Things happened incredibly fast. It seemed like seconds ago when she heard the smoke detectors going off, reacting to the dish in her oven that had caught fire.

Sansa had tried to put it out, hurt her hand, and next thing she knew, her door flung open and a towering, dark stranger holding a fire extinguisher came to her rescue.

He’d caught her eyes immediately, and not just because it doesn’t happen every day that someone breaks into your house when you’re burning food.

The man – _had he introduced himself? Did I ask his name? –_ was tall, incredibly tall. He filled out pretty much her entire door frame when he barged in, literally, and he ducked his head when he ran though her tiny hallway, right into her kitchen.

What initially caught her attention was how tall and bulky he was, and how he moved about with a lightness of foot in spite of his size and stature.

That was before he approached her again, asking her if she was okay. Sansa had forgotten largely about the fact that she’d burned her hand, because adrenaline took over, suppressing the pain she felt before. That, and…. her heart started racing when she saw him, the sound of his coarse, low voice threatening to make her weak in the knees.

He was tanned, and he seemed shy, by the way he looked at her, ever so briefly, before looking away. He immediately asked her if she was okay, and he talked to her, quickly looked her in the eyes, but only for a moment, and he turned his head slightly, and Sansa realized he was trying to keep the scarred side of his face away from her.

Sansa had already seen that he had burn scars on a large portion of the right side of his face. They covered most of his forehead, a good part of his cheek, jaw and neck. From the quick peek she got, Sansa thought she could see grafted skin there too, before long tresses of pitch black hair fell over the scarring on his neck, taking them from her view.

A sadness welled up in Sansa, but it also made her curious about this man, whom embodied so many… _contradictions_. When he told her he was a fire fighter, Sansa thought maybe he’d gotten hurt during work, and it strengthened her curiosity about him. There was something very intriguing about this man. And he… _He just said he lives next door, San. He is the guy from 4B!_

Adjusting her bathrobe, Sansa suddenly realized she was showing quite a bit of skin underneath the robe, which had come undone as she made a run for the kitchen. Her thoughts still a million miles away, she had once again forgotten about the pain in her hand, as she tried to use both to reattach the cord around her waist.

“Shit”, Sansa exclaimed. She needed both hands for this. Before she could blink twice, the man from next door returned to the living room. He carefully put a large hand on her shoulder.

“Here, I’ll help you with that,” he said.

If he had trouble looking her in the eyes before, that was gone now. Sansa realized he was being a gentleman, not looking down at her chest, which he could easily have done with how close he was to her right now, and it sent the butterflies in her tummy into a happy whirl.

Sansa noticed he swallowed, as he fumbled with the material of her robe cord, trying to tie the damn thing. She had to crane her neck to be able to look him in the eyes, since he continued refusing to look down, giving her an opportunity to study his face better.

The scarring was visible, but Sansa found it didn’t bother her. If anything, it added to his charisma, a story on his face, and she _really_ wanted to get to know about that story.

He had prominent, high cheek bones and Sansa wondered if maybe he was of native American heritage. His strong jawline was covered in stubble, except for the part that was burned. And his eyes… When Sansa got a closer look at his eyes, she felt her heart rate go up.

They were a brilliant shade of grey, with tiny specs of blue in them. Thick black lashes framed them, and when he smirked, little lines formed around the outer corners of his eyes, and Sansa wanted to fan herself, feeling a warmth spreading to her cheeks, a warmth that didn’t come from the fire he put out just moments ago. No, this was a _different_ kind of fire, and it was burning all the same.

“There, that should help in keeping you decent,” the man said. Sansa could hear a hint of amusement to his voice.

“Thanks, again,” Sansa said, smiling up at the man, who was taking a small step back.

“My pleasure,” he replied, slightly emphasizing that last word.

He cleared his throat before taking another, larger step back, away from her.

“Your cats, I checked on them. The tiger looking one was sleeping on your bed. The large fluffy one was hiding behind the curtains. I think they’re fine, eh… I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name before.”

Shaking her head to snap out of things, because gods, Sansa, you’re acting like a teenager, Sansa replied: “Oh right, we haven’t introduced ourselves, have we?”

Flashing him her warmest smile, Sansa extended her unharmed, right hand, which he immediately accepted, taking it into his own.

“I’m Sansa, Sansa Stark. And you, sir, are my hero.”

The large man held onto her hand, gently squeezing it. Sansa reveled the feeling of his large, warm and slightly calloused hand, touching hers. When he brushed the top of her hand softly with his thumb, the warmth crept back to her cheeks and she swallowed.

His eyes bore into hers, before roaming her face, and rested on her mouth for a couple of seconds, before searching her eyes again, and she couldn’t help but squeeze his hand back, very softly, as though she meant to encourage him. He remained quiet for some time, before talking again.

“It’s good to meet you, Sansa Stark,” he answered in a raspy voice.

“My name is Sandor Clegane. At your service.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay. Forget it. Five chapters won't do.  
> I am a little overwhelmed and definitely humbled at the love this fic has gotten. It's made writing it even more fun. Thank you so much! <3


	6. 6.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sansa has a lot to take care of after the incident, but first...

Sandor didn’t know what had possessed him to hold the girl’s hand in his own a little longer than was strictly necessary, since she clearly only extended it to shake his, as a means of introducing herself. She was being polite.

But fuck, sparks teased and tickled and tortured his skin where it touched hers and he was so caught off guard by the sensation of his body reacting to a simple touch so heavily, that he imagined this is what it must be like to stick your hand in a socket, the current taking you in, making it impossible to let go.

And she let him. The realization of this made Sandor swallow past a catch in his throat.   

Sandor was no idiot, and though he had been single for a pretty long time, his eyes worked just fine.

Of course he had seen absolutely stunning, beautiful women before. In fact, two of his closest friends were gorgeous women in their own right, though Sandor never thought of them that way.

There was Margaery, a good friend and the wife of his boss, Bronn.  A fine looking specimen, with a feisty character to boot. Sandor felt perfectly comfortable around Marge and they shared a good bit of raunchy banter between them whenever they met, much to the amusement of Bronn.

Brienne, the only female fire fighter in his entire fire department, was in a league of her own. Incredibly tall, and looking the part too, being a professional fitness instructor and model, Brienne was one of the two fire fighters that saved Sandor’s life when he was new to the department. They became close friends and fitness buddies. They often visited the gym together and Brienne asked Sandor to be her best man at her wedding, when she married her longtime girlfriend Jamie almost a year ago.

No woman however had ever done to him what the beautiful red head who stood in front of him that very moment, did. She had an effect on him, without even trying. Just looking at her made Sandor feel like he had been hit by a lightning bolt, that left him feeling charged and unable to move or think rationally, all at once.

Sandor could feel his palms getting clammy, something that usually never happened to him. As a fire fighter he’d learned to deal with heat soon enough, but this was something else entirely.

She looked up at him expectantly, right before licking her lips. The memory of seeing the dark blue, lace bra she was wearing underneath her robe would not allow itself to be driven out of his memory, no matter how hard Sandor tried, making his blood boil, his cock twitching in agony.

He felt like kissing her, fucking her right on the spot, holding her, taking away her pain and running away all at the same time, and Sandor didn’t know what to do with himself. He did know his cock was struggling to stand, trying to find room where there wasn’t any with the jeans he was wearing, and all of a sudden, he feared the girl, Sansa, would be able to see the bulge in his pants.

She swallowed and Sandor forced himself to not lower his gaze, he wasn’t that kind of an asshole. His erection was becoming painful and painfully obvious, and Sandor wasn’t about to make a mess of himself right here, in front of her. He was going to have to create some distance, and he was going to have to do it fast.

Not wanting to let go, Sandor gathered all his willpower, softly releasing her hand from his own. He should have looked away, because the second he let go of her, Sandor saw a flash of disappointment cross her face, and it made him feel terrible, but it needed to be done if he wasn’t going to spill his seed right then and there, like some goddamn school boy.

“We should file a report with the police, if you’re going to want the insurance to cover your door, and… this,” he said, pointing at the burned and fuming oven, forcing common sense and rationality to return.

“And I want a doctor to take a look at your hand, just in case,” Sandor continued. “A bit of the skin has come off and you might be at risk of an infection. We wouldn’t want your hand to end up looking like my face, would we?” he said, unsure of why he would want to attract any attention to his burned mug by bringing it up. _What the fuck are you doing, Clegane?_

If increasing the distance was what Sandor had in mind when he blurted out his words, they had the opposite effect. The girl closed the distance he created by stepping back. Looking at her injured hand, she said: “Medical attention might be a good idea, I’ll get dressed in a bit and visit the ER. I should see to the cats, too. But. Sandor. There is nothing wrong with your face.”

She brought up her right hand, gently using her thumb and index finger to get Sandor to lift up his head, tilting it to the right a little to get a better look at him, making Sandor feel exposed. He humored her all the same, closing his eyes at the sensation of her, softly stroking his cheek and jaw before she slightly lowered her hand to brush the hair on the other side of his face, the _burned_ side, back.

“Did this happen during work?” she asked.

Sandor closed his eyes for a couple of seconds, needing to regain his composure, thinking about the words he was going to use before speaking again. He wasn’t sure what he was feeling, a lot was going on.

His cock still gave him hell, as arousal at being touched surged through his system. He felt vulnerable, exposed, and it had been a long time since he felt that way, and it was scary, but also good in a way. He wanted her to see him, really _see_ him, and when she made no effort to pull back or remove her hand, his internal conflict was stilled and he allowed her to keep looking a little longer, before taking her hand and guiding it away from his face.

“It did,” he simply offered, turning to fully face her again.

There was no pity in her eyes, but no disgust, either. She just looked at him and Sandor found himself struck by the integrity he saw. The fullness of her luscious lips didn’t escape his gaze, either.

“Can I cook you dinner sometime, Sandor?” she asked him. Surprised by her question, he arched an eyebrow.

“You just burned your hand in a domestic fire and you’re asking me if you can cook me dinner?” he replied, amused.

A small smile formed around her lips, making his cock stir again.

“Yes. As a thank you for saving me tonight,” she said.

“And… After this has all settled down, I would _really_ like to get to know you better.”


	7. 7.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One fire has been put out, thank god. But what about that other fire???

Sansa returned to her bedroom to put on a simple pair of dark blue jeans, an off white tank top and a pale pink cardigan. A dark blue laced nighty and a bathrobe with a cute cat print on it might be comfortable enough to wear around the house, she would not see a medical specialist dressed as such.

After getting dressed and struggling to get the zipper of her jeans up, Sansa couldn’t help but giggle at the events that had unfolded this evening. Maybe it was pent up stress and anxiety, looking for a  way out now that she had a moment to herself, and things were beginning to sink in. But whatever it was, the absurdity of things wasn’t lost on her. _He’s a fire fighter._

The fire was serious enough, and Sansa shivered at the thought that her cats and she herself could have been in some very serious and acute danger, if it hadn’t been for the man from apartment 4B. Luckily Liz and Darcy were doing okay, because here they were, asleep on her bed, as though nothing had happened and everything was the way it had always been.

Darcy was curled up on the corner of her bed, his favorite spot. And Liz had apparently gotten over her initial shock as well, as she had left her hiding spot from behind the curtains to join Darcy on the bed. A dent in her curtains showed where Liz had darted off to, before. It made Sansa remember that Sandor Clegane had immediately checked on her cats when she asked him to, and the realization warmed her heart more than any fire ever could.  

Sansa’s smile widened as she stood there, taking another moment to catch her breath, staring at her two quirky cats, snoring away on top of her covers. Though Liz was younger than Darcy, she was quite a bit larger than her Bengal boy. Maine Coons were known as gentle giants for a reason; they could easily keep growing until they reached the age of four. Liz’ breeder had told Sansa that Maine Coons were a very large breed and Liz would continue to grow for some time, but Sansa had never imagined that Liz would ever become as large as she was already. She was huge, and had a heart of gold. A gentle giant for true.

Speaking of gentle giants, there was one in her very living room right now, as he had promised to see what he could do to temporarily fix her front door so she would not have to find another place to stay until she would have a chance to have it permanently fixed after the weekend was over.

The man from apartment 4B. Apparently it had taken a fire to draw him out. Sansa realized she was almost happy the fire had happened, but only because it made their paths cross. As soon as he entered the room, she knew. Sansa felt an instant connection to him, and she could not explain what it was, or why it happened, but she was more sure of it than anything else.

And that was before he approached her, and Sansa felt how her body reacted to being touched by him. It was a connection and an attraction, and she just _knew._ Pulled from her ponderings by the sound of Darcy yawning, Sansa quickly finished getting dressed so she could have her injury assessed.

***

Sandor Clegane was still in her living room when she returned, and Sansa was thinking of something to say, but the words wouldn’t come.

He ceased doing whatever he was doing, and abruptly turned around, facing her, eyes darting over her figure. She could swear there was a hint of disappointment in his eyes at the realization that she was now fully clothed, but a half-smile instantly appeared on his face, and she found herself smiling back at him automatically.

“Hey,” he managed in a soft voice.

“How is your hand feeling? Are you alright?”

Looking at the palm of her burned hand, Sansa was reminded of the blisters that had stared to form there, but she nodded her head. “Yeah, it’s not too bad. Thank you for asking, Sandor.”

Sandor. She loved saying that name.

He arched an eyebrow at that.

“Are you sure? No need to act tough around me, Little Bird. I know how much a burn can sting.”

Surprised at his words, Sansa replied: “I… I am not acting tough. It hurts, but I’m sure… I’m sure I will be okay. Thanks to you and your help. Thank you so much for all that you’ve done. And are doing still. You’re very…”

She wanted to flirt with him, but shyness kicked in and Sansa couldn’t say what she really wanted to get out: that he was very sexy to her. Or brave. Or kind. Or…

He probably picked up on her intentions, because as Sandor closed the distance between them, his eyes bore in to hers, making her heart skip a beat.

_Shit, Sansa, why don’t you know how to flirt with a guy?!_

“You think I’m very _what?”_ he demanded, a hint of amusement to his voice.

Sansa swallowed. “Very...”

As he took her hurt hand in his, making sure to very light touch only the uninjured back of her hand, he continued: “Worried. I am very _worried_ , Sansa.”

Sansa swallowed again.

_Worried. Of course he is worried. He’s a professional. Oh gods. I should have known. I am probably just work to him, and-_

Before Sansa had any chance to continue her train of thoughts, Sandor brought up his other hand to her face, and it was her turn to stand frozen to the spot. It dawned on Sansa that he was replicating what she did just before she got dressed, touching his face.

Sandor softly caressed her right cheek and she had to suppress a shiver, caused by the sensation of his fingers touching her skin. When he stroked her lower lip with his thumb, very slowly and surprisingly soft for a man of his stature, Sansa found she had to lock her knees in place, because the instant surge of arousal that assaulted her body out of nowhere made her feel so weak in the knees, she would fall to the ground right then and there.

Sansa closed her eyes briefly before opening them again, and she noticed Sandor was staring at her mouth, tracing her lip with his thumb, before he swallowed noticeably, and pulled his hand back.

“Do you think your other neighbors can take in the cats for a couple of days before I take you to the hospital?” he said, after clearing his throat.

Surprised by the sudden change in his demeanor, Sansa didn’t understand why the cats would have to leave her house.

“Take me to the hospital? I’ll call a cab, and”

Sandor interrupted her before she had a chance to ask him anything else, gently silencing her by placing his index finger on her lips. She had to make an effort to not actually part them for him, so she could taste his finger.

“You’re not taking a cab, Little Bird. _I_ am taking you,” he continued, and the butterflies in her tummy went into an absolute manic state at those words. _I am taking you?_

He must have read her mind, because quickly, Sandor added in a low, gravelly voice: “To the hospital, Sansa. I am driving you to the hospital myself.”  

Removing his index finger from her mouth, Sansa asked: “I can take a cab, it’s fine. I don’t want to impose on…”

The index finger returned, and she noticed Sandor licked his lips. “I’m not offering. You were burned and I’ll be damned not to make extra sure you’re getting whatever help you need.”

Moving her head slightly to the left so his finger no longer touched her mouth but was guided to her cheek instead, Sansa closed her eyes for a second, enjoying the sensation of feeling his hand there again. It was comforting, sweet, and somehow full of… _promise._

She continued to lean in to his touch for a few more moments, and it felt like absolute bliss to her.

Sandor made no effort to move.

“Okay, Sandor. I’ll go with you. But why the cats have to leave?”

Moving his hand to the back of her neck, Sandor gently stroked her hair, before he explained.

“I’m sorry, I can’t get the door fixed well enough for you to stay here,” he said, pointing at the metal hinges. “These are broken, and I can’t replace them right now.” His voice sounded soft. "Best I can do, is bar your door with some wooden panels from the outside until after the weekend, when we can have someone look at it.”

Looking from the broken hinges that once supported her door to the tools that were on the floor, Sansa could tell he truly tried to fix it for her. Sansa braced herself for what she thought he would be about to say next, and the butterflies in her stomach became a whirlwind, an explosion.

“I don’t think you can stay here tonight, Sansa.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am having sooo much fun with these two :D The chapters seem to write themselves. Buckle up kids, because there are only three more chapters to go and... THIS FIRE GON' BUUUUURN!  
> Thanks so much for all the comments :D I hope you enjoy this chapter.


	8. 8.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Oh, I will look at her."

After making extra sure to pack enough food and toys to last them for about a year, Sansa decided to ask Loras and Renly to look after Darcy and Liz for the weekend. They both absolutely loved animals and Loras had often asked Sansa about her cats and how they were doing, every time they ran into each other in the halls, the stair case of the apartment building of when collecting their mail.

When she’d finished packing her own things as well, Sandor accompanied her over to Renly and Loras’ house. Sansa felt safe, having Sandor around. She thought it would be awkward. Because technically, they were still perfect strangers. Sansa contemplated contacting her family, but they didn’t live around and since Sansa didn’t own a car, it seemed inconvenient.

And there was the matter of not wanting to worry her parents and siblings. She was in good company, that much Sansa was certain of. Sansa loved Cat and Ned to death, but the prospect of her mother doing what mothers do when one of their little ones get hurt, was less… what Sansa felt she needed right now. She’d go to the hospital, get some medical care and she had enough friends and acquaintances right here, where she lived. Such as Loras and Renly. And… Sandor.

It must have been quite a sight for anyone not knowing the context of the situation. A hurt, disheveled looking redhead with a bandaged hand, in the company of a towering, rugged looking man, carrying a large plastic bag containing cat food and all kinds of brightly colored, fluffy cat toys, and a pink, _very_ girly looking Nike sports bag hanging off his massive shoulder.

She looked at him, standing there, carrying her things, and Sansa found it was hard to focus. He looked right back at her, the unburned corner of his mouth curling up in a tomboyish way that made the butterflies in her stomach dance a happy dance. She smiled back at him, being pulled out of her thoughts by Loras answering the door.  

It seemed that Loras and Sandor knew each other already, as they exchanged a friendly glance between them, shaking hands as he flashed Sandor one of his brilliantly charming Tyrell smiles when he realized Sandor and Sansa were standing outside his door. Together.

Looking from Sansa, to Sandor and back to Sansa, he said: “Hey video queen. Fancy meeting you here! What brings you and big boy over here to my humble abode?”

Loras had barely finished speaking when he noticed Sansa’s bandaged hand, and a look of worry crept over his face. “Oh, fuck, San, are you hurt?”

“Uh, yeah, a little,” said Sansa, looking at her hand. Somehow seeing the bandages there had reminded her of the fire, and the pain that had gone to the background, returned, reminding her of the fact that she needed to make a hospital visit.  

“It’ll be okay though,” she said, forcing a smile. “I’ve received excellent care from Sandor here. We’re about to leave for the hospital, just to make sure.”

Sandor, arching his eyebrow, held up the bag of toys and food. “There was a small fire in Sansa’s apartment. Nothing to worry about, it’s out now, everything’s back to normal. Except I kind of had to, uh, break down her door. Getting the lock fixed will have to wait until after the weekend, so I’ll put up some wooden panels to keep her place shut. We were hoping you’d be able to take in Sansa’s cats for a couple of nights?

“Sure, nothing will make Renly happier than to have two pets to fuss over. He probably won’t stop bothering me about getting a cat of his own once this is all over, but we’ll deal with that later. We’ll look after them while you get yourself all fixed up again, San. Will you be okay? Where are you staying? We have a spare room, if you nee…”

Sandor was quick to reply. “She’s staying with me.”

Sansa’s heart skipped a beat at hearing the resolve in Sandor’s voice. That raspy, low voice. Looking up at him, she realized he paused, as though he sought approval from her before continuing, and he swallowed, barely noticeably. Sansa wanted to hug him right then and there.

“Thank you so much for offering, Loras. I really appreciate it. But I’ll be staying with Sandor. He’s driving me to the hospital and he has experience in…” Sansa looked at her hand as she held it up.

“He’s a fire fighter and he has experience in taking care of burn wounds. I’ll be in excellent hands with him. I’m very grateful you’re willing to look after Darcy and Liz for a couple of days. And I’ll be around, in case they need anything.”

 _Oh, fluff! That didn’t come out weird, did it?_ Sansa didn’t mean to draw extra attention to Sandor’s face by bringing up his experience in taking care of burns. She kind of just blurted it out. Blurting things out seemed to be a thing she did around Sandor.

One look to her right calmed her right down, however. Sandor wasn’t uncomfortable. In fact, he seemed to be beaming at her, like he’d grown another couple of inches. He looked… proud.

“You’ll be in excellent hands indeed”, he said, softly.

Loras probably picked up on some of the crackling static between Sandor and herself, because at those words, Loras raised both of his eyebrows, and a look of amusement sat on his face. “I see that,” he offered. “Very well, San. Your fluffball and miniature tiger are welcome to stay here. I even promise I’ll make Renly give them back, when you’re ready,” he laughed, winking at her.

“Sandor, you look after that beautiful redhead, you hear me? She’s precious.”

Straightening his back so he reached his full height, Sandor looked at the beautiful young woman, standing to his left. He tilted his head to the side a little, making his hair fall over his shoulder as he eyed her intently. Sansa swallowed, suppressing a very strong urge to comb it back, and touch him in that very moment.

“Oh I will look at her,” he said, not immediately realizing his Freudian slip.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short one, this time. It's been a while since I last updated, and I had a little inspiration, so here's a new chapter. Short but sweet! This fire is gonna buuuuurn... Please let me know what you think in the comments! Is anyone still interested in reading this story?? Because I am not sure 10 chapters will do. Aw gawd. :D


	9. 9.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They're back.

Though he considered himself an experienced driver, it baffled Sandor a bit that he was having to pay extra much attention, really focusing on keeping his eyes on the road as they made their way over to the hospital together. The girl kept beaming at him, and he couldn’t imagine she wasn’t in at least quite a bit of pain from the injuries she sustained. But she was a real sport about it, never complaining, and something about how she was handling herself made Sandor feel extra protective of the red head sitting next to him.

He’d seen her around the apartment building before, but somehow they’d never ended up bumping into each other as they always seemed to do in the movies. All Sandor ever really caught was a ‘swoosh’ of that fiery red hair, a glimpse of it as she’d turned a corner, and it had haunted it in his dreams ever since that night. Little did he know that the real deal would easily surpass what he’d imagined her to be, before they actually met in person.

Sandor wasn’t overly insecure about himself after the incident at work left him with pretty visible scarring in his face, but when it came to girls and women, he’d never really learned how to act. He wasn’t much of a ladies man before the accident. He enjoyed being in the company of women, and though he’d never admit to it out loud, he missed having someone in his life. But he was never any good at flirting, and working crazy hours, being on call regularly, didn’t really help him retain much of a social life. But even so, Sandor wasn’t completely oblivious to the stares, attention and at times praise he’d get from women, whenever they spotted his impressive physique.

They attracted quite the attention as they walked through the hospital halls. Sandor noticed the girl stayed very close to him and he didn’t mind one bit. After waiting for about twenty minutes, the on call doctor had time to take a look at Sansa’s hand. The doctor, a short statured, friendly looking lady in her mid-forties, looked up at Sandor. It was barely visible, and she recovered quickly, but he could see she was taken aback at his scarring as soon as she looked him in the face. He didn’t think much of it, but apparently Sansa did, because she took yet another step closer to stand shoulder to shoulder with him.

Coughing to get the doctors attention, she said: “This is Sandor. He’s a firefighter. He came to my rescue earlier this evening, after I was stupid enough to forget I was cooking and something in my home caught fire. He took care of my injury and he drove me to the hospital just now. We never spoke before tonight. Don’t you think he’s a hero?”

Sandor was struck by the earnest tone in her voice, and his heart swelled with pride.

Directing her gaze at him again, the doctor looked him in the face, turned her head to look at Sansa, before looking at Sandor again. “Well then, Sandor. It seems your neighbor is very lucky to have you so close, isn’t she?”

Sansa looked up at him, and he could see she meant what she’d said. That, and… she was blushing.

“You’ve done a wonderful job dressing her burns”, the doctor continued. “They’re second degree burns, so with a little care and rest they should heal fully.”

***

As they made their way back to the parking lot, Sansa stopped Sandor from walking any further. The hallway was crowded, but she didn’t care about the fact that people were watching them. A lot had happened that night, and she had something to say that she needed to get out.

Placing her uninjured hand on his shoulder to get him to stand still, a look of surprise crept over the man’s face, making Sansa giggle at the particular look he gave her.  The tension she felt from being in close proximity didn’t do much to help her, as butterflies in her stomach kept flying and fluttering in circles, encouraging her to get the words out. To _show_ him.

“Sandor…”, she started softly.

He turned to face her, arching is eyebrow quizzically. She could drown in the grey blue of his eyes, and Sansa swallowed before she could continue.

“Yes?”, he simply offered.

Gathering her courage, she thought of the words, but it was hard.

“You…”

There was so much Sansa wanted to get out, so much she was thinking and feeling at that particular moment, that the words just wouldn’t come. She wanted to thank him. For showing her kindness, taking care of her even though they were perfect strangers. Tell him that she wanted to get to know him better, that she hoped he would like to get to know her better, too. But there was a doubt, keeping her from fully opening up. Because maybe he was just being a gentleman, doing what any decent person would do for someone else in need of help. For crying out loud, _he’s a professional firefighter, he does this for a living._

Sansa felt conflicted between holding back and wanting to act on her feelings, and give in to feeling this enormous attraction to the man standing so close to her. She wanted to touch him, _gods_ she wanted to touch him, it almost hurt to hold back the urge she was feeling to do just that.

Letting out a ragged breath, Sansa closed her eyes, swallowed again and decided to just go with it.

Bringing her hand up to his cheek, she softly caressed his face before licking her lips, pulling his face closer to hers to cover the difference in height between them, and Sandor bent his back and neck, following her guidance.

Squinting his eyes, she could see the hunger in them, and at that very moment, it proved to be all the encouragement she needed.  

Closing her eyes, she brought his face even closer to hers, standing on her tippy toes to reach him fully. As Sansa slowly brought her lips to his, a low growl escaped his mouth. Their lips touched, tentatively, and using his massive arms, Sandor pulled her in further for a passionate embrace.

Caressing his upper lip, his tongue softly touched her lower lip. And as she opened up to him,  in that very moment, as they stood there, holding on to each other for dear life, all the rest of the world seemed to fall away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooph! Goooo Sansa for taking the initiative! Who cares if everybody in the hospital is watching! :D  
> Thanks for your patience and for sticking around!! I hope you like this chapter. As always, your comments and feedback are much appreciated.


	10. 10.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "What do you want, Little Bird?"  
> An all Sandor POV.

It felt like an eternity. Just him, and her. _Her._

An instant stint of arousal hit him so vividly, he found himself light on his feet, holding on to the woman who so willingly stayed where she was, wrapped up in his arms, welcoming the caresses of his lips and tongue and reciprocating them with a passion and _determination_ he’d never received from anyone.

Sandor didn’t know how long they had been standing there, in that sober and somber looking hospital hallway, and it mattered not. But the thought that maybe she felt uncomfortable, or exposed, did matter to him and so Sandor reluctantly loosened his embrace and broke their kiss, to see how she was doing.

A look of disappointment was clearly visible on her flushed face, cheeks burning red, and it made him feel proud that she apparently was as aroused as he himself was feeling, and it was because of him.

Clearing his throat and not paying any mind to the people staring at them, some in amusement, most in utter disbelief, he sought out her eyes.

“We should go, I think. It’s getting late, and…”

Before he could finish, she broke him off.

“Take me home, Sandor,” she pleaded, her voice barely a whisper. The look on her face could only mean one thing.

She didn’t need to repeat herself. Caressing her cheek, marveling at the sensation of her leaning into his touch, all he said was “Alright”, and he took her by the hand, guiding her back to his car in the hospital parking lot.

Sandor felt her squeezing his hand a couple of times, before she let go. Just as he was about to look at her, a questionmark written over his face, she snaked her arm around his waist, tucking her head in the nook of his chest and shoulder, resting her head there instead. Her right arm, protected by the bandage that the ER doctor had put there, carefully found his chest.

Pulling her closer to him and stroking her hair with his right hand, they walked the last bit to his car in perfect silence. Sandor thought his mind would be racing at this point, thinking about what to say to her once she got in the car, or once they would arrive back at his place, but he found himself in the moment, with her, and it was all there was: nothing else mattered.

Fumbling his jeans pockets, searching for his car keys, unwilling to let go of her now that she was so close to him, it took several seconds to get the keys and open his car. A loud beep indicated the doors of his vehicle had unlocked, and the unexpected sounds startled Sansa, as she grabbed on to him tighter and let out a short shriek, and Sandor laughed.

She laughed, before a look of mischief appeared on her face. Turning to face him, arms still around his waist, she gently but firmly pushed him to the side of the car. The resolve of her actions and the obvious lust that was driving her, made his cock stand up again, as a low growl escaped from his throat.

“You’d best get in the car now, girl,” he said, voice coarse with desire. “If you want to make it home.”

Looking up at him, her body so close to his there was _no_ way in hell she could not feel his erection, a little giggle escaped from her. “I think I’ll have another taste, first, if that’s alright with you.”

Before he had a chance to respond to what she was saying, she pressed her body to his, and as they were perfectly aligned, her mouth found his and he was left at her mercy.

Playfully tugging at his upper lip with her teeth, another low grunt escaped from his mouth and it was all he could do to keep himself in check, here in this cold and abandoned parking garage.

Pulling her even closer to him, he rolled his hips, and it was her turn to moan. His hands found her sides, and as he lazily stroked her there, moving his hands up ever so slowly, he knew they were entering new, uncharted territory together as his thumbs reached the swell of her breasts, and she gasped, kissing him harder, devouring his lips and tongue.

With his back pressed to the back of his car, Sandor was fighting to keep himself at least somewhat in check. Her smell, the taste of her on his lips, hands in his hair, little moans escaping from the back of her throat; before long he would not be able to contain himself any longer – he wanted to have her. Right then, right there.

As he moved his hands to cup her perfect ass, he couldn’t find it in himself to let go of her, not just yet. With his cock painfully straining, trying to find room in his faded old jeans, Sandor picked Sansa up and turned around, using the side of his car to help support her back.

She willingly opened her legs for him, putting them around his waist as he lifted her up and turned them around, crossing them at the ankles, using her arms to find more grip by moving them up to his shoulders, hands in his undone hair.

“Fuck, Sansa… You taste so good,” he growled, rolling his hips to her again, feeling even more aroused at the sound of her little moans and sighs in direct response to his administrations. When she started moving with him, tightening her grip around him with her long legs, as he pressed her erection to her again, it was all he could do to at least still be somewhat of a gentleman and not take her, devour her, right there on the spot, in a dark and cold parking lot.  

His movement stilled, slowly, reluctantly, and though he kept very close to her, his body flush to her own, his lips to her ear, he knew he had to find some kind of way to get a bit of distance between them, or they would never make it to his place.

She slowed down her motions along with his, her blue eyes never leaving his.

“Let’s get in the car, Sandor,” she offered. Take me to your place. I want…”

He couldn’t help himself, and Sandor said: “Yes, Sansa? What is it you want?”

She moaned in what seemed to be frustration, but there was an amused glint in her eyes, one that he could see even in the sparse light of the parking garage.

As she moved her hands from his hair to the sides of his face, using her uninjured hand to stroke his lower lip, she licked her own.

“I think you know _perfectly_ well what I want, Sandor. I want you to take me home. I want you to keep doing this to me. I want _you.”_ , she replied, voice thick with desire and want.

Letting go of her hips so she could lower herself, he walked around his vehicle, holding open her door.

“Oh, you’ll have me, Little Bird,” he grunted. “As I will have you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I struggled to get this one out. Until I didn't. Had me a glass of Amaretto and voila! Words came :) Looks like someone else is going to come, too. :O 
> 
> Thanks for reading this fic, I still feel so humbled and thankful for all the love it has gotten so far. As always, your comments and feedback are very welcome.

**Author's Note:**

> This was meant to be a one shot. My first one shot ever! I asked for an idea on Tumblr and Cecilia came up with this idea. As I started writing, ideas kept popping up so I decided that rather than a one shot, I'd make this a fun, short fic instead! I really hope you like. 
> 
> Richard is a special little Easter Egg for Cecilia. ^^


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